Keeping up with changing regulations

Friday

Oct 25, 2013 at 2:11 PMOct 25, 2013 at 4:31 PM

With all the buzz about health care legislation and the Defense of Marriage Act court judgments, it's easy to focus on how this might or might not affect you personally. Think it doesn't affect your business? Wrong! This type of all-encompassing regulation can affect your company.

With all the buzz about health care legislation and the Defense of Marriage Act court judgments, it's easy to focus on how this might or might not affect you personally. Think it doesn't affect your business? Wrong! This type of all-encompassing regulation can affect your company.

Were you aware that if your enterprise has more than $500,000 of revenues annually that beginning Oct. 1, you must notify all current and new employees of their options with health care exchanges? Did you know that changes may be required to your policies on COBRA coverage and family medical leave to include employees of same-sex marriages? There is a lot of information out there and it is continually changing.

So how do you keep up? If you don't have the resources to hire a Human Resource professional; if you prefer to spend time with your business instead of the scouring the internet for the latest news, consider relying on outside professionals who already service your business in other ways.

Payroll companies are a great source of information to keep you compliant. They have to know the latest rulings and will often pass that information on to you in a quick newsletter. Sometimes they will even draft a communication letter for you.

Consider checking in quarterly with your attorney and accountant. You'd be surprised what a casual conversation over lunch can reveal. Perhaps that the new product you are launching next month is subject to regulation by the Food and Drug Administration, Consumer Product Safety Commission or some other agency whose initials you've never heard of. In any case, meeting periodically is good practice for tax planning at a minimum.

Regular networking with other business owners in your area can be a great source of information as well as building relationships within the community. Likewise, managers in your same industry often provide ideas when discussing how they resolved headaches in their company. Business groups like local chambers of commerce and the Southern New England Entrepreneur's Forum provide monthly informative events focused on specific issues. Your local university also offers programs and lectures targeted at current hot topics.

In this business era, you need to keep up with regulatory changes. Using all your resources can help you achieve this and still give you the time to focus on growing your company.

Next month: How to recognize fraud in your organization

Cash Values business tips are not a substitute for legal, accounting, tax, investment or other professional advice. Lisa Aldrich's CPA practice focuses on helping business owners build success and personal wealth through a full-range of professional accounting, tax and financial reporting services. Contact her at lisa@laldrichcpa.com or 774-264-8576.

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